Series/Festivals

Week of April 20, 2005

The Sounds of Science with Yo La Tengo. (Not Rated) "The Sounds of Science" is a unique, exquisite experience that consists of eight films (six to fourteen minutes each) directed by French artist/scientist Jean Painlevé between 1937 and 1976. Documenting undersea life with extraordinarily beautiful, microscopic photography, this selection from Painlevé's 200 films highlights spider crabs covered with spectacular camouflages, sedentary fans expelling swirling branchial plumes, sea urchins shuffling on hydraulic feet, jellyfish giving birth, ciliated larvae creating their own water currents, the female sea horse laying eggs in the male's pouch and his convulsive release of offspring, the octopus with a "love life," hermaphroditic mollusks and liquid crystals changing molecular structure in response to temperature and pressure. Never clinical, Painlevé's artistry transforms this hidden world into a dreamlike fantasy. Yo La Tengo provides an inspired interpretation with music that enhances the magic and mystery. Screens at 7 and 10 p.m. Saturday, April 23, in the Moore Auditorium on the campus of Webster University, 470 East Lockwood Avenue. Call 314-968-7487 for more information. (Diane Carson) WFS